October 22, 2014      5:45 PM
Republican Rep. Sheets faces tough reelection bid in blue Dallas County
Sheets isn’t taking anything for granted; Democrats see an opening in marginally GOP district
In our effort at Buzz
Central to give you some perspective on the very few truly competitive Texas
House races, we thought now would be a good time to take you to Dallas
County. Voters in one of the areas of Texas now difficult for Republicans have, of
course, the potential to come out big for Sen. Wendy Davis in her bid for governor, complicating things for
Republicans running in down ballot races like Rep. Kenneth Sheets.
His district, HD 107,
takes in parts of Dallas – the upscale “M Streets” part of town – along with
parts of Garland and Mesquite. It was carried by Mitt Romney in 2012 with 52 percent and Democrats think they see an
opening to pick off that seat with attorney Carol Donovan. She was endorsed by the Dallas Morning News over
Sheets and has a number of grassroots groups working on her behalf. Battleground
Texas is among them.
In their
endorsement, the DMN Editorial Board said
they believe Donovan "would advocate more assertively on education funding
than her Republican opponent, Rep. Kenneth Sheets. She would be a more
consistent supporter of local control for municipal gas drilling and payday-loan
operations.” The endorsement reads like it was a close call for the paper. They
also gave credit to Sheets, saying he’s become “less ideology-focused in his
two terms in office and displayed more effective lawmaking.”
There are some in Dallas
who told us that the district is “Republican enough” that the DMN endorsement of his opponent actually helps Sheets, who
has had some trouble shoring up support in the base of his party.
And that’s where things
get really interesting.
By Scott Braddock
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